“Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one was listening, everything must be said again.” – Andre Gide
Today’s Daily Stoic poem:
Submitted to WDYS # 244 and inspired by a recent David Elikwu newsletter
Today I’m feeling:
A bit groggy, perhaps sick, in pain! I didn’t sleep well because of the pain in my hip and I’m limping around a bit today. It’s a bit of a drain on my thoughts.
I’m also on the edge again with a sore throat. Lots of Covid and dengue fever around at the moment.
It’s cool again with some rain but the grey skies are feeling uninspiring. I’m motivated to sleep more.
Today I’m grateful for:
The young chemist who spoke good English helped me get some tiger balm patches to help my aching hip.
The best thing about today was:
22 Grams coffee for the morning. Gui closed House today to go to Bangkok, so 22 Grams is my next choice. It would be my first choice if it was nearer school and cheaper.
In the end, I didn’t stay too long as I came to the hospital to drop mum and pick up Amy, who hadn’t slept much as dad didn’t get into his operation until 11pm and out again at 4am.
I came home and struggled around with my painful hip, which seems to be agitated by sitting down.
Something I learned today?
It’s Spain’s birthday today and he told me that he is now 15 years old, which means that he is a year older than everyone else in his class. I guess that he was held back a year at some point because of whatever his minor social disability is.
Review your acts, Good and bad.
At around 5 pm I was getting hungry and Amy had mentioned the uni having a market on Fridays now.
I dropped by to Baipad’s to see if she would practice riding up there and though she complained, I convinced her to do it. She lets her lack of confidence stop her from doing things to improve herself.
Her sister jumped on the back too and we slowly made our way to the uni but there was no market sadly, so we headed back and then Baipad wanted to show me where Fahmai lived and we went there too but he wasn’t home.
At the end of the day, I think that Baipad gained a little more confidence in herself at least hopefully understanding that repeatedly doing something will improve her skills.
inspired by a quote from Marcus Aurelius
Today I’m feeling:
A little tired but in a good mood. I’ve been waking up before my alarm quite often which is a little annoying as I know I’m not getting quite enough good sleep. This morning as I was dozing and waiting for my alarm to go off I wondered if it was because I was excited to exercise. That was quite an interesting thought for me.
I moved on to Intermediate leg exercises this morning and got through it pretty easily. I don’t think I can move up to Intermediate arm exercises yet though. I still don’t have the strength in my back, shoulders and arms yet and I’m still waiting for my right shoulder to fully recover before getting back into even the Basic exercises that I normally do.
Today I’m grateful for:
All the drivers that let me cut into their queues so that I could get to work a little quicker this morning (actually every work morning!). Traffic is getting busier and busier along the bypass now and the dumb traffic light systems they have in place frustrate everybody.
Anyway, I will let people in when I am in a similar situation and see other folks being in a hurry.
The best thing about today was:
Getting paid! But now I have to be really careful with the reduced payment again this month.
Can I stick to no more than two coffees a day and nix the third that I have every other day or so? Buy less snacks, no candy for the kids, no meat sticks for the pups….?
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
As soon as I got paid I settled my account with Gui at House. That was just over 1000 baht! Gah!
He has offered to let me pay once a week before but I told him I didn’t want to do that because I can fool myself by only paying 130 baht a day, convinced that that amount is acceptable. But seeing 1000 baht a week…..that I can’t rationalise!
Something I learned today?
Today was Baitoey’s birthday. I only taught her a little bit last year and she was quite quiet in class but she is always friendly and playful with me since then. I gave her 5 baht as a gift because that was the only money I had in my wallet! My last 5 baht!
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
My old student Noah was complaining about T. David this morning and then in the afternoon, after they had a class together T. David complained about Noah and her attitude. So I thought I would message her and see what the story was.
She said she has given up in his class because he goes too fast and she doesn’t understand. When she told me that other students do understand I encouraged her to ask them for help (though I know she has struggled to make good friends in this class). I told her not to give up and that I will help encourage her as much as I can.
Kru Ning talked to me a little after our classes about some of the grade 7 students we share as they sometimes don’t show up to her class, or do little or nothing whilst there. I confirmed that they were a little difficult to get motivated and gave her my suggestions though I struggle with them too.
It was nice to actually have a Thai teacher ask my opinion, or for my help, with our students. I guess usually they don’t because perhaps they don’t want to admit that they are in that situation or admit that perhaps a foreigner might have another angle or useful idea.
Today I’m feeling:
Pretty good but in some pain. I fell asleep on my back last night which was pretty unusual for me but I soon woke up needing to pee. Back to side sleeping, my shoulders ached me awake again a few times so when my alarm went off I wanted to sleep a bit more but then I was feeling pain on the left side of my jaw as my rotten teeth decided it was time to tell me to go back the dentist. With needing to pee again it was time to get up. I still managed to motivate myself with a 100 star-jumps and out to have a day of coffee, reading and ironing.
Today I’m grateful for:
Being able to watch a funny podcast on YouTube that made ironing 17 shirts more pleasant than normal.
The best thing about today was:
I found out Hayden has a new girlfriend called Vashti and I was surprised to hear that she is Aboriginal. I’m not sure why I find that surprising. I only ever met his first girlfriend who was a stereotypical pretty blonde-haired blue-eyed girl. He sounded very happy today and looking forward to his new job doing support work which he is hoping to start in the next week or two.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
In general, the garden is out of my control or more specifically it is too big and I’m too lazy to get it under control fully. My priorities lay elsewhere. Handled by Amy asking if we needed the gardeners to come again to which I replied ‘Yes!’
Something I learned today?
Having removed a ton of YouTube subscriptions I returned to Little Chinese Everywhere and Yan’s journey from Europe to China. This time she was in a small Georgian village nestled in amongst rolling green mountains. One particular interaction stood out to me when the old lady owner brought breakfast and Yan said thank you in Georgian and the old lady gave her a hug and said thank you in Chinese. It reminded me of the goodness within most of humanity.
What mystery fascinates me?
Ultimately the mysteries of the truths of the world. Growing to be more aware of histories written by victors or manipulated by those in a position of strength I’m left contemplating what it is that I know that is true. So many lies are so often repeated these days and so much information and counter-information is available. What is it that I should believe?
Mysteries of origin, the universe, the planet, humanity. How can it not entertain the mind? The existential mystery of meaning.
The mystery of what I will eat tomorrow.
inspired by the titular Bill Hicks bit
Today I’m feeling:
With doing extra exercise in the morning I’ve been falling asleep a little earlier these last couple of nights and with no meals yesterday after breakfast, just snacks, yesterday I woke up tired and sleepy.
I pushed through exercise this morning despite feeling like I could give up. I’m glad I did that. My body feels good and my brain, despite telling me I’m tired, exhausted, sleepy etc, is feeling good too.
Today I’m grateful for:
My little plastic toe separator for my left foot’s big toe, trying to push it back into line and hopefully ease the pain in the main joint. I’ve tried a few others but they have ended up being painful to wear for long periods. This one I can wear all the time (except when wearing shoes).
The best thing about today was:
A sudden feeling in my feet that was free of pain. It was really noticeable though only lasted for a couple of seconds. I will be pleased if this is a sign of moving towards pain-free feet. I know this is an odd thing to list as the best thing but I was shocked when I felt it. In my negative thought mode, I wonder if perhaps my pain receptors are turning off instead!
Something I learned today?
Thaksin came back to Thailand after 15 years in exile and went straight to jail. He’s 74 years old and has health issues and the talk is that he will have to serve 8 years in prison. This all happened on the same day his old political party made a deal with their foes to form a government without the party that won the election earlier this year. There’s something tricky going on for sure!
What am I curious about?
Hmm.. I feel a lot less curious about things these days. As with the quote from the other day, I’m aware that there is so much I don’t know but I’m also not concerned with it either.
Maybe I’m curious about how long I will live and be able to ward off senility and fragility. I’m not really fighting against it but trying to maintain what health I do have. Ultimately it doesn’t matter.
I’m less curious about music these days as I have so much backlogged that it’s overwhelming. If I was still involved in a scene I would be more motivated to keep looking for new things. I kinda miss that but enjoy other things instead.
I’m curious about how I feel when I fly to Australia in October. This will be my first time in Australia for a short holiday, much like we would do every couple of years from Australia to Thailand. I’m not looking forward to the prices though!
8th Jan 2026 – Shared with What’s Going On – letting go
Today I’m feeling:
Bleary but upbeat. I hung around at school for an hour, enjoying hanging out with all the many students I know and even some I don’t know. I came out for coffee but sitting here for a couple hours has seen my energy levels fall and I decided to cancel my class this afternoon and go home, especially as Amy leaves again tomorrow morning.
Today I’m grateful for:
Some sun breaking through for an hour or two to dry our washing. I still have a couple of doonas to take to the laundromat that will need washing and drying which I’ll try and do this weekend.
The best thing about today was:
Coming home to find that Amy had mopped and vacuumed before she leaves tomorrow. As we have another long weekend coming I can enjoy a clean and relaxing house.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
We’d told Aing that I fly to Australia on October 12th so asked her to come here on the 11th. As I had to tell Bronwyn and Jochen what dates I would be there I thought to double-check my flight details and discovered that I actually leave on the 9th! Luckily we hadn’t booked her ticket already! With a few messages back and forth everything is confirmed and we’re good to go!
Something I learned today?
I watched another Jerry’s Take On China about how the US is stirring up trouble in the South China Sea about a reef claimed by both China and the Philippines. Amazing how easily reality can get distorted through the lens of corrupt and compromised media. I find it difficult to reconcile that I’m more likely to trust Chinese state media these days. At least in amongst the weirdly Asian political presentation style it is just generally facts that are stated. No opinion or bias just plain reporting. The criticism will be that it is completely biased to the party’s doctrine but that criticism can also be directed to any Western media these days too. No matter the many-party system, there is really only one party. As the old saying goes, ‘It doesn’t matter who you vote for, the government always wins’.
What are some of my favourite song lyrics?
All the quotes that I entered here for 2022 I entered into a little notebook to send to Hayden. As there was lots of space left I decided to fill it with lyrics that I love. But when going through them and looking at them as words they somehow lose their impact. Some words carry their emotion in the way they are sung along with the memories of sweet times gone.
Today I’m feeling:
Yesterday I felt like I was on a bit of a high but today feels the opposite. I can’t quite figure out why. I slept well enough but perhaps not long enough as I ended up back in a deep sleep from 11:30 until 2 pm. Since then I’ve not been enthused about anything and passed an hour or so pulling up weeds.
Today I’m grateful for:
Noey’s coffee. Now she is capable of making a perfect cappuccino for me. I like to think that I contributed to her improvement by always allowing her to make my coffee so that she can get more practice, though in reality there is obviously more to it than that.
The best thing about today was:
It’s almost 6pm and there is nothing of any real highlight except for Noey showing off her belly button with the clothes she was wearing. Or the satisfaction of a square metre of the garden weed free for a week or two. It’s not been a bad day either. Just not much of anything.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I’ve been getting an aching pain in my eyes. Also a vague toothache around my jaw. Maybe I’ve got some sinus problem or perhaps even just a bad tooth that is causing pain elsewhere in my face. It could also just be looking at too many screens. I should probably go get my eyes tested at some point again. I don’t feel like my vision has gotten worse but a new pair of glasses might help.
When I look at my glasses I always see a speck on the left lens from when they dropped on the floor in Kimi’s bathroom not long after I first got them.
Something I learned today?
Watching Little Chinese Everywhere as she(Yan?) travels to Tibet and the second-highest hotel in the world. The highest being in Peru. The scenery in Tibet is quite amazing.
What is a fear that I would like to overcome?
I suppose I still have plenty of fears but not sure I feel the need to overcome them. For example, my fear of spiders is not particularly life-threatening or would be life-changing if I overcame it.
I was chatting with Ellen yesterday and she had just been tandem skydiving in Sichuan province. I’ve thought about doing that before but feel afraid. The fear is not of the height or hitting the ground, the fear is about losing control, fearing fainting or heart attack or something like that.
Still though, it’s not like a fear of skydiving is holding back my dreams in any way.
Today I’m feeling:
Full up after eating two baked potatoes and a whole tub of ice cream. I slept well and got up and got going. My finger still hurts a lot but I’m trying to ignore it and just continue as normal.
Today I’m grateful for:
My umbrella that was next to useless in trying to keep me cool standing out in the middle of the football field. At least it kept the sun off my skin somewhat. Now I’m sitting in the shade but my shirt is soaked through with sweat already. Welcome to scout week.
The best thing about today was:
Feeling pretty laid back and enjoying my more recently found ability to go with the flow in situations such as today. David was railing against it just like I used to and I had to remind him to relax. He said he needs to know what’s going on and needs to structure. I told him that this is not the place for that.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
This morning I spent two hours hanging around at school just to hold my arms out for five seconds to line up the primary students. I was improperly trained for about twenty seconds in how to hold my arms out. I did a great job!
I forced myself to enjoy this colossal waste of time even knowing that I will have to do something similar for the next two days too,
Something I learned today?
I’ve been quite impressed with Yuval Noah Hariri’s book Sapiens so I went looking for videos of his and was quite shocked to find that supposed Christians resort to calling him the anti-Christ! His offence (in the video I saw) was just saying that AI has the ability to start its own religion and to write its own Bible. What seems like a straightforward suggestion to me seemed to trigger many dogmatic non-thinkers, those tied up in the narrative that there can only be one god and that he is mostly white and lives in America. I’m projecting a little with that last sentence but it smacks of ignorance that falls into a particular stereotype that appeals to me.
What are the most important relationships in my life?
Number one is my relationship with myself. If I keep that running smoothly all other relationships will take care of themselves.
written after reading the Jawbreaker interviews in We Owe You Nothing
Today I’m feeling:
Pretty good again. I had better energy and was able to do my warmup in the morning before coffee. The rest of the day has been a steady supply of all right.
Today I’m grateful for:
The beautiful fat dark clouds covering the tops of the mountains this morning after a night of intermittent rain. It looks like it will rain more but I decided to ride my motorbike out for coffee so that I could remember the feeling of being cold (the rain is cold but the air isn’t).
The best thing about today was:
Finally getting to see the Swans win again and with their biggest-ever victory margin as they scored over 200 points against the troubled Eagles. It wasn’t much of a contest but it was better than watching another dire struggle and losing. I managed to beat my shirts into shape getting the ironing done at the same time too. A winning day.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I’ve wrenched something in the middle finger middle joint on my right hand and it hurts like hell. I’m not sure when I did it. I did a bit of weeding but I can’t remember feeling anything untoward at the time. It could’ve been when I was hanging, though I don’t recall anything much then either. Playing an hour of guitar probably hasn’t helped either. I’m going to handle it by going to sleep and hope it feels better in the morning.
Something I learned today?
The biggest winning margin the Swans have had is 171 points, which they equalled today. It’s also the first 200-plus point game by any team since 2011. I don’t think it reflects how good the Swans were but how bad the Eagles were.
What is my favourite form of self-expression?
Is this not the living breathing thinking acting form of myself? If I move, if I open my mouth. My favourite form? Myself as a whole. Take it or leave it.
First two lines inspired by reading Broken Summers by Henry Rollins, second two lines inspired by Miyazaki’s My Neighbour Totoro and the title inspired by the titular 70s UK sitcom.
Today I’m feeling:
Still a little stiff but better than yesterday. I managed to be conscious of my sleeping position during the night which helped a little. As today is a holiday I’m happy to be around home and do a little more exercise and stretching.
Today I’m grateful for:
The gym rings I bought this week and can now hang from them to stretch out my back. I only have strength enough to hold it for 15 seconds but hopefully, that will improve a little. I’m not so fussed about strength though, more for the stretch.
The best thing about today was:
Getting up early and not having to be anywhere. I know I just had six weeks or more of this but my feeling is different when it’s during the working weeks. The temperature outside is just about perfect at sunrise and sunset too. I should be outside more.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
So it was, after talking with Amy and doing a bit of Thai study with her, I decided to try and fix up one of our trees. It’s the weird one that doesn’t have leaves (so it’s probably not even a tree) and it breaks off easily and exudes a sticky white glue substance that is really hard to get off the skin and as usual, I was only wearing shorts. I climbed up the ladder to try and fix some branches in place and several pieces broke off covering me in the sticky juice on my head and arms. After I finished I jumped in the shower but the juice in my hair and on my head got into my eyes and stung like crazy, reminding me of the time I got conjunctivitis in my early years in Sydney. I ended up crying uncontrollably for about an hour and even now my eyes are still stinging. Damn, that goop is nasty. I hope it doesn’t cause any long-term problems.
Something I learned today?
I learned how to play a simple Iron Maiden riff on guitar today though it took me a long time to get it right.
What do I want to focus on this week?
I suppose I want to focus on getting my body out of this pain and that will help focus my mind. I need to get my stamina back up to speed so that I am not so exhausted by the end of the week. This is a long ongoing process after many years of bodily abuse.
I always need to focus on improving my classes and management and I’m still trying to sort out some technical issues with Quizizz. It’s getting there.
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